Tight singing, inventive playing fuel 'Misbehavin'

Thursday

Oct 24, 2013 at 11:06 AM

A talented quintet of singers and actors is aided by musical director Chiaki Ito and her band

By John StatonJohn.Staton@StarNewsOnline.com

Directors of musical revues tend to get caught up on the idea that these shows are meant to tell some kind of cohesive story, when in fact most of them are little more than excuses for two hours of diverting song and dance. Joy Gregory, on the other hand, seems to understand that if you tell a bunch of little stories well, the big picture will take care of itself. That's emphatically what happens in "Ain't Misbehavin'," the jazzy Fats Waller revue that Gregory's company, True 2 You Productions, is staging in collaboration with City Stage at the Scottish Rite Temple through Sunday.Gregory, who directs, and her five-person cast, of which she is a big part, do a fully entertaining job of bringing the audience into the 1920s and 1930s world the songs evoke, no mean feat considering that many of these tunes have been around for 75 years or more.A talented quintet of singers and actors is aided by musical director Chiaki Ito and her band, whose interpretations bring fresh life to the score, which includes instantly recognizable standards. "Honeysuckle Rose," for example, is given a languid pace that emphasizes its sexiness, and Gregory and cast mate Tracy Byrd match strong vocals to turn the tune into a romantic winner. Contrast that with "The Viper's Drag," a reefer-glorifying number given a time-warpy psychedelic jazz treatment as well as effectively snakey choreography from Byrd. The theater vet is making his choreographic debut, but you'd never know it from the inventive movements he brings to the stage, exemplified by the dynamism of "Find Out What They Like," which whiplashes from prim-and-proper to down-and-dirty and back again. Thanks to the energy of Gregory, Kim Pacheco and Stephanie Newkirk, the song, which could seem outdated and sexist, turns hot and sweaty, in part because it has the same basic message as any number of Cosmo cover teasers. ("7 hot sex tricks! Be the best he's ever had!")Elswhere, Markus Temoney brings charm and humor to several tunes, most notably the jokey "Your Feet's Too Big."In general, the show picks up steam as it goes on, diving down deep into "Black and Blue" a stark, almost shockingly beautiful change of pace, before closing with a big, rousing finish. "Ain't Misbehavin'" portends good things for True 2 You, which will embark on its first full season in 2014.